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The Sepulchre
The Sepulchre are a small organization within the Swords of Sanghelios, formerly serving as an intelligence agency and assassins for the Covenant. They were briefly disbanded during the Great Schism, and soon resurfaced after 2554, now rebuilt and reformed to serve under the Swords of Sanghelios, once again serving as assassins and informants. They are infamous for their secrecy, remaining almost unknown during the Human Covenant war, even as they hunted down and successfully eliminated several Spartans. Background Several years after the formation of the Covenant, it was clear that there would more than likely be several enemies both internally and externally that would have to be dealt with in less than honorable ways. The prophets knew that even with the Sangheili's blind obedience to the ideals of honor, they would still need to commit underhanded tricks to successfully deal with issues such as these, as proven by Kaidon 'Muram's plot against them, his treachery nearly killing one of the hierarchs. It was with this realization that Hal 'Moram, an already disgraced warrior, sought a chance at redemption, if only for the chance to once again fight. Begging the prophets for a chance to further serve the covenant, they decided, a surprise to even Hal, that they would not make him an Arbiter, but instead give him command of a small band of other disgraced Sangheili, tasked with both spying on suspected heretics within the Covenant, as well as the rare few external threats, given free reign over their methods. Hal quickly used his newly acquired group to eliminate several Kaidons, warriors, and other such members of the Covenant either plotting against or doubting the truth of the Great Journey, proving themselves to be unusually proficient at the tasks assigned to them, even rooting out and eliminating some of their own targets. However, the massive stigma and 'honorless' attributes of Hal's organization meant that they had to operate in secrecy, lest the other Sangheili discover them and wipe them out. During one assassination attempt, Hal and his assassins would meet together in the tomb of an ancient descendant of their current target, a grave heresy and massive disrespect to said target. It was in this tomb that their name, The Sepulchre, would arise, now giving them an official, if rarely spoken title. As time passed, Hal's Sepulchre would gain more disgraced warriors to join the Sepulchre, becoming a much larger organization before too long. They would remain unknown to the Covenant at large, until the unusually disastrous attempt on Kaidon Jav 'Lodam's life. It's first true commander, much to his subordinates' surprise, would not be Hal himself, but his second in command, Ver 'Morkamee, an extremely skilled assassin whom Hal trusted with the runnings of their new organization, especially as he himself began to grow old and weak. History Assassination of Kaidon Jav 'Lodam Jav 'Lodam, suspected to be one of the many conspirators in the assassination of the Prophet of Security, quickly became one of the Sepulchre's main targets, as several assassins now plotted his demise. However, as their investigation continued, it soon became clear that Jav had little to do with the Prophet's death, soon realizing that it was several of his subordinates who had conspired such heresy. While they eventually eliminated these heretics, they failed to do so without drawing Kaidon 'Lodam's ire and suspicion, unbeknownst to the fact that his warriors had committed a great heresy, he tried to uncover and kill the assassins, becoming one of the first to learn of the Sepulchre. Near-Discovery and Replacement Kaidon Lodam's search would ultimately bring him to torture a Sepulchre informant, ultimately killing him as he began to speak of the Sepulchre's deeds. Enraged, he brought forth evidence of their existence to the Hierarchs, almost bringing scandal upon them. Human-Covenant War (WIP) Disbandment and The Great Schism Reformation (WIP) Equipment Unlike other forces like the Silent Shadow, the Sepulchre ultimately relied on more readily available tools, their armor largely ad-hoc and ranging from unshielded, crude armors taken from lesser forges in poorly developed worlds to Evocati and Special Operations armor with impressive defensive suites. Their weapons vary equally from crude farmers' tools, Kig-Yar manufactured slugslingers, and even Jiralhanae equipment, with the Spiker's relatively quiet report and stopping power at short ranges making it a favorite of many operatives. Trivia * Other names considered for the Sepulchre were The Inquisition, The Templars, or The Council of the Shadow. * Their creation was inspired by the unusual armor of the Special Operations Sangheili shown in the Headhunters motion comic, which prompted the author to ponder whether or not they could be working for some sort of other Covenant branch. Several other events and random thoughts soon resulted in the creation of the Sepulchre. * The Sepulchre were named after a suggestion made by Ajax-013.